Florida Car Insurance – Compare Best Car Insurance Companies

Florida Car Insurance

Florida auto insurance has some unique qualities compared with insurance in other states, and we ll help you understand it all. Here we provide Florida auto insurance requirements, our recommendations for the coverage you should buy, and insurance laws that are specific to Florida. Also, you can see average car insurance rates for nearly every ZIP code in Florida to help inform you as you shop for auto insurance in the Sunshine State.

See rates by ZIP code

The average car insurance rate in Florida is $1,823 a year. Car insurance companies use different formulas and weigh risks differently for each driver. This means rates can vary significantly by insurer, which is why you should compare rates. For example, in Coral Gables ZIP code 33135, the highest rate among six carriers is $5,710. That s over $4,000 more than the lowest ($1,500).

Cheap car insurance in Florida

Florida car insurance requirements

**The table shows the average annual rate of nearly every ZIP code in Florida from up to six major insurance companies. Rates are for a male driver, age 40, with a clean record and good credit for a 2016 Honda Accord. Data was provided for CarInsurance.com by Quadrant Information Services.

Recommended car insurance coverage

The best car insurance coverage may not be the cheapest, so how much insurance should you buy? Bare-bones coverage may be a good choice if you have few assets or have an old car and don t drive much. But if you have a home and investments, consider buying more insurance. If you don t, you re at risk for having your money and house taken to cover the cost of an accident. If you financed your car you will be required to get additional comprehensive and collision coverage.

Liability

We recommend you buy more insurance than is required to legally drive a car in your state, especially if you have savings and assets. The more money you have, the more likely you are to be sued following a car accident should your insurance be insufficient to cover all the expenses. If your net worth is:

less than $50,000, choose at least 50/100/50

between $50,000 and $100,000, choose at least 100/300/100

more than $100,000, choose at least 250/500/100

If you’re leasing or financing your car, you must get coverage of 100/300/100 or higher.

Collision and comprehensive

Collision coverage pays for damage to your car after an accident that you cause. Comprehensive insurance pays to replace stolen cars and for damages from vandalism, flooding, hail, fire and animal strikes. These are optional, and, typically affordable to add to a policy. The average annual rate for collision for Florida drivers is $242, comprehensive is $107, according to the Insurance Information Institute. If your car is:

less than 10 years old, you should strongly consider buying collision and comprehensive.

more than 10 years old, only buy collision and comprehensive if your car is worth $3,000 or more, if you couldn t afford to replace your car if it s wrecked, or if you just want more protection on your policy.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist

These are both optional coverages and should match the liability limits you choose. Uninsured motorist coverage and underinsured motorist coverage pays for damages if you re hit by a driver with no insurance or a driver with coverage that s insufficient to pay for your repairs and medical expenses.

Medical coverage (MedPay)

Medical payments coverage can help pay for the medical or funeral expenses of covered drivers and passengers after an accident, regardless of fault, up to $25,000. In most states, including Florida, it’s an optional addition to your car insurance policy. Because Florida requires you to carry PIP, you likely don’t need MedPay coverage. That’s because PIP provides coverage equal to and beyond MedPay. However, one benefit of MedPay is that there’s no deductible. Another is that it covers passengers in your car who have no health insurance. Finally, Florida PIP pays only 80 percent of your medical expenses, so MedPay would cover the remaining 20 percent of costs for your injuries. MedPay does the following:

Covers you and your passengers medical expenses

Pays for expenses after health insurance limits are exceeded

Offers additional protection to insured drivers who are hit by a car while walking or biking

If you and your passengers:

Don t have health insurance, or have a plan that doesn t cover car accidents or has low limits, we recommend that you add medical coverage of at least $5,000 to your car insurance policy.

Do have health insurance, it s still a good idea to have medical coverage if you want the best protection in your policy, as it can pay out after your health benefits are maxed out. It is especially a good idea if your health plan has high deductibles you must pay before treatment is covered.

Gap insurance

If you don t own your car outright and have an accident, gap insurance pays the difference between the cash value of your car and the current outstanding balance on your loan or lease.

If you re financing your car, your car is less than one year old and you ve put less than 20 percent down on it, you should buy gap insurance. If not, you don t need gap insurance.

If you re leasing your car, it s a good idea to buy gap insurance if you aren t already required to in your lease agreement.

If you own your car outright, you don t need gap insurance.

Florida car insurance rates by company

Below you’ll see average annual rates for Florida, ranked cheapest to most expensive, for three coverage levels:

State minimum liability requirements

Liability limits of $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident and $50,000 property damage

Liability of $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident and $100,000 property damage, with comprehensive and collision at $500 deductible

Best car insurance companies in Florida

Scores are based on Insure.com s Best Insurance Companies customer review survey of 3,700 customers. Companies not in the top 10 of market share do not qualify. All scores are out of 100.